


At least it's nice

by hlopushka



Category: GOT7
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Idols, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, M/M, Not Beta Read, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-14
Updated: 2018-01-14
Packaged: 2019-03-04 21:18:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,452
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13373247
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hlopushka/pseuds/hlopushka
Summary: On his fifteen birthday Jinyoung gets his words. They sit a little below his right clavicle, and there goes the idea of Jinyoung walking around topless.You know the drill, everyone gets their soulmate's first words to them on their skin.





	At least it's nice

On his fifteen birthday Jinyoung gets his words. They sit a little below his right clavicle, and there goes the idea of Jinyoung walking around topless.

It says, "I love you," an English phrase, each letter large and square, and somehow very arrogant in Jinyoung's opinion. Jinyoung doesn't know what to think. If it's the first thing his soulmate is going to say to him, does it make his soulmate a shallow person who goes around telling absolute strangers they loved them? That's not someone Jinyoung wants to spend his life with.

His sisters are less judgmental.

"Maybe it'll be a shy, cute girl, or a boy, from school, liking you from afar, and the first time they speak to you is when they decide to confess?"

Still, it doesn't sit well with Jinyoung. How can they say it first thing, it's just unbelievable. If they liked him from afar, would it be possible to call it love? Maybe Jinyoung is shallow himself but he wants to be loved for who he really is and not for who he seems to be from afar. And why would they do it in English?

"Maybe," his sister gets another idea, "you'll be paired in an English drama club together, and that's the script?"

That would mean they don't even like Jinyoung when they say it, and that thought makes Jinyoung sad. People get stupid words all the time, and maybe he's a very selfish person if the idea of bearing a fake declaration of love hurts him so much.

"Why would I even join an English drama club?" he asks instead.

"Who knows what could happen," she shrugs. "Life finds a way."

And who knows, indeed, that not five years later he becomes an idol, a part of a successful duet, and every second fangirl and occasional fanboy scream and tell him that they love him in all the languages in the world.

"What if they are a fan?" he wonders, and hopes that they are not. That would be like that hypothetical shy school girl from before but even worse. He wants someone who will be on an equal footing with him. Someone who doesn't look up (or down) to him, and someone who can like him for his true boring personality and not for a flashier idol version.

Being an idol doesn't only complicate searches for his soulmate but in general make him less sociable. He can't easily meet new people. He absolutely can't show his words (not that he wanted to before) but now he is watched by a lot of people, and they all want to impose on his private life so he keeps to layers just to be safe. And even if he could trust people and build relationships with them, he doesn't really have time for that. He even uses a website to get a higher education instead of going to a university as a normal person. His parents met each other at university, his soulmate might be searching for him at one, too.

Instead he gets online buddies.

Online studies are mostly a lonely process, but sometimes the students get paired to peer review their works. The first time it happens, it's an obligatory English language course and he gets assigned an essay to proofread. He can't find any mistakes and he even has to use a dictionary for some words his peer is freely using. Jinyoung shamefully thinks about his own work, his simple words and grammatical structures. He gets back a B and a recommendation to practice his English more. "Watch a movie," his professor comments on his work, "read a book. I like your thinking but it feels like your writing doesn't do it justice yet." She helpfully sends a link to the course page where a student can find someone to study with.

Out of all serious students who are serious in their serious quest of learning he finds there Jackson.

Jackson, or J852W as Jinyoung knows him for approximately five seconds before sending him a message with a proposal to study together and getting an immediate cheerful response, is not Korean. His message on the board says "can help with English/Chinese and talk modern poetry, need help with Korean VERY MUCH." So Jinyoung thinks, they can help each other out, right? And, maybe, talk poetry?

Right?

They talk anything but English, Korean or any kind of poetry.

Jackson is from Hong Kong and Jinyoung is so relieved he doesn't need to invent some bullshit excuse why they can't have a face to face meeting.

But they do talk a lot.

They are the same age and Jackson starts calling Jinyoung his Park Puppy almost immediately. He's absolutely no help in English at all. Jinyoung knows that Jackson can write beautifully constructed paragraphs about Shakespeare's language, but when Jinyoung asks him to clean up Jinyoung's essays he always returns them with no negative comments whatsoever.

"You're quite useless," he messages Jackson when it happens again. "I know for a fact that my English sounds very Korean, can't you just help me with that, can you?"

He gets a very sad looking puppy sticker in return.

"It sounds very you, why would I criticise it?"

Jinyoung has to start asking Brian for help. It doesn't mean he stops chatting with Jackson though.

Modern poetry Jackson is so fond of happens to be a hip hop music genre, and they talk about that, too. Jinyoung is surprised to find out Jackson is actually a very dedicated nerd. He can talk at length (switching to English and back to Korean all the time) about complicated rhymes and forms and rhythms that catch your ear when you listen to it. Jackson listens to some kpop as well, but he never mentions JJ-Project, and Jinyoung never pries. Jackson likes Bigbang a lot and some indie hip hop bands Jinyoung has never heard about, but it's okay. Jinyoung knows music, he's doing music, so it's refreshing to talk to someone about it like it's important to him but he wouldn't be judged for his opinion either way. Because Jackson doesn't know that's Jinyoung's a professional, that's why. Of course, he doesn't judge Jinyoung because he doesn't know he has to, so it's not like he's just exceptionally kind. Jinyoung tries not to forget that. Still, he likes that a lot.

Jaebum side eyes him every time he takes his phone out and it takes a while for Jinyoung to understand that he's jealous. Shouldn't have made him call him hyung, he thinks, petty as always, but makes sure to bother Jaebum a little more.

On Christmas Jackson sends Jinyoung the sweetest small poem written by Jackson himself, and Jinyoung teases him for days afterward, but is secretly very touched.

He thinks, at times, about telling Jackson about his idol job, but it just never comes up, and he's glad to keep their friendship as it is, hidden from outside, comfortable, comforting. Between Jackson and Jaebum he's not so lonely anymore, and he stops thinking about his soulmate much, stops staring into every fan's face if they tell him they love him.

Jinyoung finds out about Jackson’s birthday when it's already past, and by then they are already quite good friends, so he wants to get him some small present. He has no idea what, but then he bumps into G-Dragon at some music show, and he thinks, "why the hell not." It's awkward to ask for it, but G-Dragon in person is apparently incredibly nice, so Jinyoung gets an autograph. Then he bullies Jackson into telling him his postal address, and he ships the card out, proud of himself.

He gets a call a week later. He's surprised Jackson is calling him, but then he understands. Apparently, Korea Post is super efficient.

He excuses himself from a dance studio and accepts the call.

"I love you," Jackson says excitedly, and Jinyoung is smiling before he knows it.

"Waeee," he croons and wants to laugh.

There's a pause on the line.

"I can't fucking believe I learned Korean for you," exclaims Jackson, and Jinyoung laughs more, "I didn't understand at first it was a word at all. It was written in Korean on me and who says it to a person at all. Like I go to google what does it mean? It means a rude 'what', that's what Google says. Why do you laugh? Don't you understand?"

Jinyoung understands but he just wants to laugh forever.

"Who says 'I love you'?" he complains instead.

"At least it's nice!" Jackson throws back.

Jaebum's head pops out from the dancing room.

"Is everything alright?" he asks.

Jinyoung smiles for days.


End file.
